Basquiat Painting Could Sell for $45 Million at Sotheby’s #basquiat #sothebys #contemporaryart
March 11, 2026
A monumental 1983 painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat, Museum Security (Broadway Meltdown), is heading to Sotheby’s Contemporary Evening Auction in New York with an estimate in excess of $45 million. Created during one of the most important years of Basquiat’s career, the work reflects his rapid rise from downtown street artist to global art world icon. The painting features Basquiat’s signature visual language of crowns, skulls, symbols, and crossed-out text — referencing themes of identity, colonialism, and the tension between art and commerce.
Works by Jean-Michel Basquiat
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Untitled 5, from The Figure Portfolio
Odours Of Punt
Great Wind of Sphenoid, from Anatomy
Untitled 4 (from Leonardo)
Untitled 2, from The Figure Portfolio
Untitled 1 (from Leonardo)
The Scapula, from Anatomy
Three Views of The Shoulder Joint Opened, from Anatomy
Female Pelvis, Back View, from Anatomy
Cabeza, from Portfolio II
Untitled 1, from The Figure Portfolio
Wolf Sausage, King Brand, Untitled (Dog Leg Study), Undiscovered Genius
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